Some uncharacteristic sloppiness cost the Vancouver Whitecaps two points on Saturday.
While the team remains atop Major League Soccer’s Western Conference standings after battling D.C. United to a 3-3 draw, the ‘Caps know they could have boosted the cushion with a win.
“I think the balance in our performance today is not as good as it usually is,” said Whitecaps head coach Jesper Sorensen.
Kimito Nono had a brace for a D.C. side that took the lead in the 16th minute, then fell behind twice but refused to relent until the final whistle.
Lucas Bartlett also scored for United (6-8-12) and goalkeeper Sean Johnson provided six saves.
The ‘Caps (15-6-5) got a goal and an assist from Thomas Muller, while both striker Brian White and winger Bruno Caicedo found the back of the net and Yohei Takaoka registered four stops.
A scramble in front of the Vancouver net off a D.C. corner put United on the board in the 16th minute.
With Takaoka tied up at the other post, defender Mathias Laborda stepped in and, lying on the turf, stopped Nono’s initial attempt from fully crossing the goal line, but Nono ran in and booted a second shot in to give the visitors a 1-0 lead.
The ‘Caps are usually stingy when it comes to conceding set plays, but D.C. had 10 corners in Saturday’s game.
“Then all of the sudden they get momentum, they get confidence, they know it’s an opportunity for them. And it can be tricky,” Sorensen said of giving up set plays.
Defending is generally a strength for Vancouver, but against D.C., two corners proved to be costly.
“It’s not a habit. It’s what can happen,” Sorensen said. “We can score a goal, the opponents can also. But we have been consistently good in that part of the game. Today we were not and also they were very strong.”
A rebound at the other end of the field saw the Whitecaps equalize nine minutes later.
Johnson stopped White’s first shot but the rebound popped back out to the top of the six-yard box and the striker blasted his second try into the top of the net.
White’s goal — his team-leading 17th of the MLS season — set a new career high for the 30-year-old American forward.
Vancouver took the lead in the final minutes of the first half off a give-and-go play inside the penalty area.
Caicedo slipped a ball to Muller at the top of the area, then took a few quick steps toward the D.C. net. Muller sent it back to the foot of the Ecuadorean winger and he tapped it in to put the ‘Caps up 2-1 in the third minute of first-half stoppage time.
Caicedo said he’s been working hard in training on plays and movements since joining the Whitecaps in January.
“It’s just people that are helping me with my development,” he said via a translator. “The coaching staff are doing a tremendous job with me.”
Asked whether he’d envisioned himself executing that kind of a play with German soccer legend Muller, the 21-year-old product of Barcelona SC’s youth academy said the moment was still surreal.
“In reality, I couldn’t have even imagined it until now, until I’m actually doing it,” he said. “And now I’m enjoying it a lot.
“I’m enjoying playing for this football club and in this city. And also, I’m enjoying playing with players like Ryan Gauld and Andres Cubas and all these players that are around me. It’s amazing.”
Vancouver Whitecaps’ Tristan Blackmon (left) and D.C. United’s Joao Peglow (7) vie for the ball during the first half of an MLS soccer match, in Vancouver, on Saturday, Sept. 26, 2026.THE CANADIAN PRESS/Jacob Mallari
D.C. evened the score once again in the 65th minute off another set play.
Keisuke Kurokawa floated a ball in off a corner kick and Bartlett headed it in over Takaoka to make it 2-2.
Vancouver struck back in the 72nd minute when Muller collected a ball from defender Aleksa Cvetkovic and fired a rolling shot from just above the penalty area. The blast ticked off Johnson’s outstretched fingertips and into the D.C. net to put the ‘Caps up 3-2.
The strike drew animated cheers from the announced crowd of 26,080 at BC Place.
D.C. continued to push and, in the 80th minute, Hosei Kijima sent Nono a ball that the Japanese right back popped in for his second goal of the game.
The 3-3 draw left Vancouver with 50 points on the season, three ahead of second-place side FC Dallas in the Western Conference standings. The Whitecaps have eight games left on their regular-season schedule.
Both teams were missing stars who were away playing for their national teams on Saturday.
The ‘Caps had six players out on international duty — including defensive midfielder Andres Cubas and midfielder Edier Ocampo — and four others absent due to injuries and illness.
Vancouver still fielded “a good team,” Sorensen said.
“When you have players on national team duty, it’s also because they have good qualities. That’s always the case,” he said. “But that’s also the case for opponents … We don’t want to talk a lot about players who are not here.”
D.C. was without three players who had been called up to represent their countries, including Tai Baribo, and one who missed the game due to injury.
Vancouver bolstered its ranks with a pair of signings on Saturday, inking Canadian forward Johnny Selemani to a contract through the 2029-30 MLS season and bringing midfielder Valter Sedin up from MLS NEXT Pro side Whitecaps FC 2 on a short-term MLS deal.
UP NEXT
Whitecaps: Visit the Chicago Fire on Oct. 6.
United: Visit Inter Miami on Oct. 10.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 26, 2026.
By Gemma Karstens-Smith | Copyright 2026, The Canadian Press. All rights reserved.